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The Book of
Haggai
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Authorship
The prophet Haggai recorded his four messages to the Jewish people of
Jerusalem in 520 BC, eighteen years after their return from exile in
Babylon (538 BC). Haggai 2:3 seems to indicate that the prophet had
seen Jerusalem before the destruction of the temple and the exile in 586
BC, meaning he was more than seventy years old by the time he
delivered his prophecies. From these facts, the picture of Haggai begins
to come into focus. He was an older man looking back on the glories of
his nation, a prophet imbued with a passionate desire to see his people
rise up from the ashes of exile and reclaim their rightful place as God’s
light to the nations.
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Date of Writing
The Book of Haggai was written in approximately 520 B.C
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Genre
The book of Haggai appears to be a mixture of prose and poetry since the
introductory passages are prose while on the other hand, the messages by the prophet
are poetry since they display features which are typical of Hebrew poetry and thus, it
can be described as “poetic prose” as Ackroyd suggests.
Haggai employs antithesis (cf. 1:6) and rhyme (cf. 1:6, 10; 2:6).
Repetition more than any other feature characterizes the style of Haggai since he uses
the introductory formula “This is what the Lord says” or variations upon this formula
this twenty-six times (1:1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 8, 9, 12, 13; 2:1, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 14, 17, 20,
23).
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Historical Background
Haggai’s prophecy came at a time when the people of Judah were extremely
vulnerable. They had been humbled by their exile to Babylon, hopeful in their return
to their Promised Land, and then so discouraged by opposition in their rebuilding of
the temple that they had quit (Ezra 4:24). Now, sixteen years later, with Haggai
blaming their lack of food, clothing, and shelter on their failure to rebuild the temple,
the Jews were receptive to his message of rebuilding the Lord’s house.
Unlike most of the other prophets, Haggai explicitly dated his prophecies, down to
the day. He gave four separate messages, the first on August 29, 520 BC (Haggai 1:1
); the second on October 17, 520 BC (2:1); and the final two on December 18, 520
BC (2:10, 20). These messages encouraged the people of Judah to finish building the
temple and to have hope in God for the promise of blessings in the future.
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Themes/Theology of the Book

The four messages constituting the book of Haggai were calculated to arouse the
flanging spirit of the people, to inspire them with the will to do great things for God.
Haggai realized the importance of the Temple as the visible seat of God's presence
and as the strong bond needed to hold the nation together in fidelity to the covenant
and obedience to the Law. Haggai encouraged the returned exiles to bend every effort
toward the rebuilding of the Temple.
 In its entirety, the message of Haggai met with a more prompt and eager response on
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the part of both leaders and people than that of any other prophet. In contrast, that of
Jeremiah was utterly and openly repudiated. Most of the prophets, in fact,
encountered opposition ranging all the way from apathy through contempt to
persecution. But Haggai stands forth as the most successful of the prophets, if
immediate compliance with his message may be considered the measure of a
prophet's success. The noble example of leaders and people is eminently worthy of
emulation today.

It was the spirit of hearty cooperation that led, within a remarkably short time, to the
completion of the Lord's house. The same spirit will, in our day, lead to the
completion of the spiritual house of God and to the establishment of His eternal
kingdom (1 Peter 2:5; cf. Matt. 24:14). Had the spirit manifested by the Jews in
Haggai's day continued, the glorious promises made to the fathers by the prophets
would soon have met their fulfillment and Messiah would have come (PK 703, 704)
and died and begun His eternal reign (see Vol. IV, pp. 27-32). Haggai's message to the
church today is not only one of warning and admonition but also one of great
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Outline of the
Book
The First Message of The Second Message of The Third Message of The Fourth Message of
Haggai, 1:1-15. Haggai, 2:1-9. Haggai, 2:10-19. Haggai, 2:20-23.

A. Indifference reproved, 1:1-
6.
B. The reason for the
drought, 1:7-11.
C. Response of the people to
the prophet's message, 1:12-
15.
A. Those grieving over
former Temple comforted,
2:1-5.
B. The glory of the new
Temple will surpassthat of the
former Temple, 2:6-9.
A. Religious formalism
insufficient, 2:10-19.
B. The people must obey in
order to receive the blessings
of God. 2:15-19.
A. The overthrow of nations
opposing God, 2:20-22.
B. A personal promise to
Zerubbabel, 2:23.
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Issues in the Book
Haggai & Zechariah
The book of Haggai is closely linked with
Zechariah 1-8. The prophecies of Zechariah
date from 520 B.C.E. (the year Haggai
prophesies) to 518 B.C.E. Zechariah is a
contemporary of Haggai and shares his
concern for a rebuilt temple and a new
messianic age under the leadership of
Joshua and Zerubbabel. Haggai and
Zechariah are named together as prophets in
Ezra 5:1 and 6:14.
Priestly Ruling
In Haggai 2:10-14, the prophet asks the
priests for a ruling concerning ritual purity,
then uses the ruling as an analogy for the
people’s current situation. Biblical scholars
disagree as to what is meant by the analogy.
Some argue that the people who are
referenced as “unclean” in verse 14 are the
Samaritans; others assert that it refers to the
Jews. In any case, the meaning of the
following verses is clear: while the temple
lay in ruins, the Lord was displeased and
struck crops with blight, mildew, and hail.
From the day that the temple’s foundation
was laid, however, the Lord promises to
bless the people with prosperity.
The Temple
Haggai is an important book for
understanding the centrality of the temple in
Jewish life and faith. The exiles have
returned to the land, planted crops, and
rebuilt homes for themselves; but as long as
the temple still lies in ruins their identity as
a people remains unformed. Haggai
promises prosperity only when the temple is
rebuilt.
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The Book of
Malachi
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1
Authorship
The final book of the Old Testament, Malachi received its name from its
author (Malachi 1:1). In Hebrew, the name comes from a word meaning
“messenger,” which points to Malachi’s role as a prophet of the Lord,
delivering God’s message to God’s people.1 Malachi offered no other
identifying information about himself, leaving out markers typical of
other prophets such as his father’s name or the current leader of Israel.

However, based on the content of the book, it becomes clear that Malachi
delivered his message of judgment to a Judean audience familiar with
worshipping at the temple in Jerusalem (2:11). The people of Judah had
turned away from the true worship of the Lord, leaving themselves under
judgment and in need of salvation.
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2
Date of Writing
The Book of Malachi was written between 440 and 400 B.C.
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3
Genre
The content of the book of Malachi places it in the category of prophecy,
but the form in which that content is packaged is out of the norm for OT
prophecy. The book is written entirely in prose. Further, the material is
not embodied in the conventional format of oracles of judgment and
salvation.
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4
Historical Background
Malachi certainly wrote to the people of Judah (Malachi 1:1; 2:11), but
the historical setting becomes clearer in Malachi 1:8. Here the prophet
used the Persian word for governor, indicating a time period between
538–333 BC, when the Persian Empire ruled the Promised Land. Malachi
also wrote about the corruption of the temple sacrifices, meaning that he
likely delivered his message many years after the Israelites rebuilt the
temple in 515 BC. The prophet’s concerns mirror those of Nehemiah’s,
suggesting that Malachi prophesied to the people while Nehemiah left the
city for several years, beginning in 432 BC (Nehemiah 13:6).
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Themes/Theology of the Book
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•The “burden” of prophecy
Malachi’s first word, massah, “oracle” also means “burden.” This double meaning of
the word affords an insight into the nature of prophecy. Prophets are “burdened” to
deliver their messages, the word from God that often judges and condemns. “Woe is
me, my mother,” cries Jeremiah, “that you ever bore me, a man of strife and
contention to the whole land!” (Jeremiah 15:10; see his similar laments in 11:18-19;
17:15-18; 20:7-8, 14-18). Massah as both burden and message reminds us that
speaking God’s message of judgment often burdens today’s preachers as well.
•Priestly fidelity
“And now, O priests, this command is for you” (2:1). Malachi’s most pointed
criticisms are aimed at unfaithful and corrupt priests. The role of Christian priests and
pastors is quite different today, but reading these chapters inevitably causes
contemporary readers to reflect on what constitutes faithfulness and integrity among
today’s clergy.
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Outline of the
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Book
Divine Love The Degenerate State of Preparation for the Day of
Unappreciated & Religious Life, 1:7 to A Summons to Judgement, 3:16 to 4:6.
Unrequited, 1:1-6. 2:17. Judgement, 3:1-15.

A. Introduction, 1:1. A. Failure to distinguish between
B. God's eternal love for things sacred and common, 1:7-
10.
Israel, 1:2-5.
B. Failure of the Jews in their
C. Israel dishonors and
mission to the Gentile, 1:11, 12.
despises God, 1:6. C. Failure of the priests to provide
spiritual leadership, 1:13 to 2:13.
D. Failure to apply the principles
of religion to daily life, 2:14-17.
A. A warning of the day of
judgment, 3:1-6.
B. A specific indictment for
robbery of God, 3:7-12.
C. An indictment for
contempt of God, 3:13-15.
A. Deliverance for those who
fear the Lord, 3:16,17
B. Annihilation for those who
despise the Lord, 3:18 to 4:1-
3.
C. Divine guidance assured
those who fear the Lord, 4:2,
4-6.
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7 Issues in the Book
"I have hated Esau"
Why does Malachi use such harsh language against
Edom and Edom’s ancestor Esau? In covenant or
election language Malachi is simply saying, “I chose
Jacob and not Esau.” In general, however, Edom is
singled out for harsher judgment than other nations (
Psalm 60:8-9; 137:7; Isaiah 21:11-12; 34:5-17; 63:1-6;
Jeremiah 49:7-22; Lamentations 4:21-22; Ezekiel 25:12-
14; 35:1-15; Joel 3:19-21; Amos 1:11-12; Obadiah 1-16
). This may be because the first division in the covenant.
family is between Jacob and Esau, who sold his
birthright, and Edom represents all non-covenant
peoples. Or it may be because, as some scholars believe,
the Edomites collaborated with Nebuchadnezzar in the
destruction of the Jerusalem temple in 587 B.C.E.
The "Lord of hosts"
The term Yahweh tsebaoth occurs often in Isaiah 1-39,
Jeremiah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi, but seldom in
other books. The meaning of tsebaoth is “armies,” such as the
armies of Israel (Psalm 44:9; 60:10), the armies of heaven (
Nehemiah 9:6; Psalm 148:2), or the armies of Yahweh (
Joshua 5:14; 1 Samuel 17:45). When connected with heaven
or Yahweh it means the array of heavenly beings, as in
Micaiah’s vision of “all the host of heaven” (1 Kings 22:19)
or Elisha’s vision of the horses and chariots (2 Kings 6:17).
The term “Lord of hosts” means that Yahweh is not a solitary
being, but that there are other celestial beings (though not
divine beings) in the eternal realm of God.
Thank you!